550
L. Wang
To obtain food and clothing, man has reclaimed forests, grasslands, lakes, swamps,
hills and mountains into dry land, water land and terrace, conducted countless irrigation, shipping and flood control projects, and endlessly exploited and utilized all
kinds of underground minerals like salt, coal, petroleum, clay and metals, laying the
material foundation for the development of Chinese civilization. Through the long
living experience, the Chinese nation, always thinking of the relation between man
and nature, has formed a rich ecological culture and unique wisdom. Ancient sages
proposed and explained the systematic view of heaven, earth and human being in
an organic unity, the ecological ethics of “letting all creatures live” and “treating all
beings well,” and the view of resource conservation and sustainable development
featuring “moderate utilization.” The hundreds of millions of Chinese farmers have
also upheld the recycling tradition of “trash to treasure” for 4000 years. All these
make invaluable ecological cultural heritages. They reflect Chinese ancestors’ deep
thinking and rational practice of man-nature relation, and imply the secret to the
continuity of the Chinese civilization.
It goes without saying that all civilizations hitherto have paid a corresponding
environmental price for their development. The Chinese civilization has continued for
5000 years thanks to advantageous natural conditions, but the environment it has lived
in has indeed undergone earthshaking changes—some are positive to meet human
needs, while some are simply reckless destruction with deplorable consequences.
For thousands of years, over 80% of the mountains, forests, grasslands and swamps
in China have vanished due to constant logging, reclamation and landfill, millions
of kilometers of land have been eroded into deserts, and the once vast and flat loess
plateau has disintegrated into crisscrossing valleys and ravines. The destruction of
forests and vegetation has degraded the water-containing capability, and water and
soil loss has disrupted or even dried up many river systems. The Yellow River has
seen overflow or inundation more than 1500 times in 2500 years and changed course
several times, and the Yangtze River has caused increasingly serious flooding in
recent centuries. Numerous lakes and swamps have been destroyed and wasted till
complete disappearance. Persistent poaching and habitat damage have led to the
extinction of a lot of wildlife, turning the once widespread reindeer, elephant, giant
panda and crocodiles into rarities.
Historical literature shows that the man-nature conflict doesn’t just happen in
modern times. The Chinese nation has encountered at least two extremely severe
environmental and resource crises in history. The first time was at the turn of the
Zhou and Qin dynasties. At that time, the Chinese civilization was centered in the
middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River, where the growing population and land
reclamation gradually exhausted mountains, forests and waters. Important materials
such as leather, fur, horn, teeth, feather, arrow, grease, glue, cinnabar and lacquer were
in short supply, people were generally worried that logging, hunting and handicraft
could not sustain, and kings feared the loss of mountains and rivers would weaken
their states. In response, the states released various laws and regulations to control
logging and hunting and protect the reproductive ability of natural resources. With
the establishment of a unified nation and the social and economic transformation,
the crisis was dissolved over time.
L. Wang
To obtain food and clothing, man has reclaimed forests, grasslands, lakes, swamps,
hills and mountains into dry land, water land and terrace, conducted countless irrigation, shipping and flood control projects, and endlessly exploited and utilized all
kinds of underground minerals like salt, coal, petroleum, clay and metals, laying the
material foundation for the development of Chinese civilization. Through the long
living experience, the Chinese nation, always thinking of the relation between man
and nature, has formed a rich ecological culture and unique wisdom. Ancient sages
proposed and explained the systematic view of heaven, earth and human being in
an organic unity, the ecological ethics of “letting all creatures live” and “treating all
beings well,” and the view of resource conservation and sustainable development
featuring “moderate utilization.” The hundreds of millions of Chinese farmers have
also upheld the recycling tradition of “trash to treasure” for 4000 years. All these
make invaluable ecological cultural heritages. They reflect Chinese ancestors’ deep
thinking and rational practice of man-nature relation, and imply the secret to the
continuity of the Chinese civilization.
It goes without saying that all civilizations hitherto have paid a corresponding
environmental price for their development. The Chinese civilization has continued for
5000 years thanks to advantageous natural conditions, but the environment it has lived
in has indeed undergone earthshaking changes—some are positive to meet human
needs, while some are simply reckless destruction with deplorable consequences.
For thousands of years, over 80% of the mountains, forests, grasslands and swamps
in China have vanished due to constant logging, reclamation and landfill, millions
of kilometers of land have been eroded into deserts, and the once vast and flat loess
plateau has disintegrated into crisscrossing valleys and ravines. The destruction of
forests and vegetation has degraded the water-containing capability, and water and
soil loss has disrupted or even dried up many river systems. The Yellow River has
seen overflow or inundation more than 1500 times in 2500 years and changed course
several times, and the Yangtze River has caused increasingly serious flooding in
recent centuries. Numerous lakes and swamps have been destroyed and wasted till
complete disappearance. Persistent poaching and habitat damage have led to the
extinction of a lot of wildlife, turning the once widespread reindeer, elephant, giant
panda and crocodiles into rarities.
Historical literature shows that the man-nature conflict doesn’t just happen in
modern times. The Chinese nation has encountered at least two extremely severe
environmental and resource crises in history. The first time was at the turn of the
Zhou and Qin dynasties. At that time, the Chinese civilization was centered in the
middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River, where the growing population and land
reclamation gradually exhausted mountains, forests and waters. Important materials
such as leather, fur, horn, teeth, feather, arrow, grease, glue, cinnabar and lacquer were
in short supply, people were generally worried that logging, hunting and handicraft
could not sustain, and kings feared the loss of mountains and rivers would weaken
their states. In response, the states released various laws and regulations to control
logging and hunting and protect the reproductive ability of natural resources. With
the establishment of a unified nation and the social and economic transformation,
the crisis was dissolved over time.